Development alone cannot bring peace and prosperity unlesssocial justice and gender equality are ensured. It has been wellaccepted that various development programmes have bypassedwomen who constitute about half of the population of the country.International conventions and conferences, legal enactments,constitutional provisions etc. highlighted the imperative need forgender equality and women empowerment. The rural poor, with theintermediation of voluntary organizations join together for self helpto secure better economic growth. This has resulted in the formationof a large number of self help groups in the country, which mobilizesavings and recycle the resources generated among the members.SHG’s are necessary to overcome exploitation, create confidence forthe economic self-reliance of the rural poor, particularly amongwomen who are mostly invisible in the social structure. These groupsenable them to come together for a common objective and gainstrength from each other to deal with exploitation, which they arefacing, in several forms. A group becomes the basis for action andchange. Significantly, credit is a major factor in boosting economicdevelopment if it is effectively utilized. The government’s recentinitiatives to streamline credit operations and delivery systemthrough micro-finance movement and strengthening and expansionof credit institutions (SHG’s) can definitely help in the revival of ruraleconomy and empowerment of the rural poor. Micro-creditintervention programme has been well-recognized world over as an

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effective tool for poverty alleviation and improving socio-economicconditions of rural poor. In India too, micro-credit is making a strongheadway in its efforts to reduce poverty and empower the ruralpoor. Against this backdrop, the present study has been carried outto assess the impact of micro-finance on socio-economic status of Scheduled Caste women. The study is planned in nine chapters.Chapter Ist is an introductory one, which deals with shiftingparadigm of development and governance. It also presents rationale,objectives and methodology. The study has been carried out in UttarPradesh and Uttaranchal, covering a sample of 1120 beneficiariesand 173 officials and non-officials, 224 SHG’s, 143 villages, 28 blocksand 7 districts. Chapter IInd is concerned with development of Scheduled Castes in India and deals with educational and economicempowerment, poverty, land reforms etc. to examine their status inIndia. Chapter IIIrd deals with the status of Scheduled Castes inU.P. and Uttaranchal. It focuses on socio-economic status,participation in development programmes and their impact onconditions of Scheduled Castes in the states. Chapter IVth isconcerned with empowerment of Scheduled Caste women anddelineates the status of women, changing paradigms of womenempowerment, women’s education and employment, governmentpolicy and women empowerment etc. Chapter Vth dwells upon themicro-finance in India and delineates the genesis of SHG’s. Theirconceptualization, models, linkages, and geographical spread of micro-finance etc. Chapter VIth is concerned with functioning of SHG’s and is based on the survey of SHG’s. It focuses on the profileof surveyed SHG’s, their formation, stabilization, bank linkages,